White House joins TikTok amid national security concerns
The White House launched a TikTok account as President Donald Trump credits the app for attracting younger voters in the 2024 presidential election.
A high-powered group of majority American-based investors may be set to take ownership of TikTok’s U.S. operations after a convoluted yearslong bid to keep the social media app available in the United States.
Senior White House officials told reporters on a Sept. 22 call that TikTok has reached a preliminary deal to sell its U.S. operations to a group of investors that will include private equity firm Silver Lake. Oracle, a U.S.-based technology firm, would serve as TikTok’s security provider for its American operations, they said.
While the officials did not disclose other investor names, President Donald Trump has already dropped a few. During a Sept. 21 interview on Fox News, Trump said billionaire tech investor Michael Dell was involved in the deal, and Rupert Murdoch and his son Lachlan Murdoch, who run News Corp, would “probably” be in the group as well.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt also told reporters at a Sept. 22 briefing that Trump is expected to sign the deal later this week.
Oracle, Silver Lake, News Corp and Dell Technologies did not immediately respond to requests for comment when contacted by USA TODAY on Sept. 22.
Here’s what we know so far about the deal to keep the app in the U.S. – and which American investors may be involved.
Why was TikTok set to be banned in the US?
For years, TikTok’s future in the U.S. remained uncertain as lawmakers raised national security concerns over the shortform video app, alleging ByteDance is sharing U.S. user data with China. TikTok has repeatedly denied these claims.
Former President Joe Biden signed a law in 2024 banning TikTok in the United States unless ByteDance divested its U.S. holdings. Trump, however, has extended the sell-or-ban deadline three times so far.
After months of negotiations, on Sept. 15, U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer told reporters at a trade meeting between U.S. and China officials that TikTok would move to U.S.-based ownership under the framework deal.
Trump first hinted that issues over TikTok’s China-based ownership had been resolved in a social media post on Sept. 15.
“A deal was also reached on a ‘certain’ company that young people in our Country very much wanted to save. They will be very happy!” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post.
Is Oracle buying TikTok? Company expected to control app’s algorithm, officials say
According to the White House officials, once the deal is approved, Oracle will be in charge of TikTok’s security systems, including updates to the app and how user data is stored.
Under the deal, Oracle will also be in charge of most of the app’s source code, which helps control its functions, as well as the app’s content recommendation algorithm, the officials said.
TikTok’s algorithm is responsible for sorting and ranking content for users based on their data, including interactions, preferences and profile demographics.
Oracle will obtain and inspect a copy of the algorithm, then retrain it on U.S. user data, the officials said. All U.S. user data will be stored on Oracle servers in the U.S., according to Leavitt.
TikTok will remain globally interoperable, meaning U.S. based users will still be able to see videos posted by users in other countries, Leavitt said.
Oracle, which was cofounded by billionaire Larry Ellison, sells cloud computing and database software. In 2020, Oracle became TikTok’s cloud provider and a minority investor in TikTok Global.
What is Silver Lake, the private equity firm involved in TikTok deal?
While officials confirmed that private equity firm Silver Lake will also be part of the new investor group, they did not provide further details about the nature of the firm’s role.
Silver Lake’s portfolio of current assets includes Dell Technologies, which is run by Michael Dell, who Trump said would be involved in the deal. It’s unclear how Silver Lake’s part in the investor group will impact Michael Dell or Dell Technologies’ role in the deal.
In addition, Silver Lake has big-name assets like Peloton, Klarna and more. It is one of the largest private equity firms in the world, according to Private Equity International.
Who else is part of investor group to own TikTok’s US assets?
Officials did not disclose further names that could be included in the investor group taking over TikTok’s U.S. assets.
However, they did say the group will include a mix of firms that have already invested in ByteDance, TikTok’s parent company. ByteDance must retain less than 20% of equity in TikTok’s U.S. assets as part of the deal.
In addition to Michael Dell, Trump said on Fox News that media magnate Rupert Murdoch and his son Lachlan Murdoch may be involved in the deal.
The president has at times been at odds with the Murdochs’ media companies — Trump most recently filing a $10 billion lawsuit against Rupert Murdoch as owner of The Wall Street Journal in July.
While some global firms may be involved, the ownership group will have majority American investors and be run by a majority American board of directors, the officials said.
Several US bidders previously expressed interest in TikTok ownership
Earlier in the TikTok ownership saga, several U.S. bidders expressed interest in the app. Some high-profile names involved in past bids included “Shark Tank” investor Kevin O’Leary, Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian and James “Jimmy” Donaldson, the internet superstar known as MrBeast.
Most recently, in April, cryptocurrency foundation Hbar and Zoop, a startup co-led by the founder of OnlyFans, jointly submitted to the White House a plan to buy the app.
Melina Khan is a national trending reporter for USA TODAY. She can be reached at melina.khan@usatoday.com.
Greta Cross is a national trending reporter at USA TODAY. Story idea? Email her at gcross@usatoday.com.
Contributing: Joey Garrison and Kinsey Crowley, USA TODAY
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